Those who had a passion for Legos while growing up might have dreamed about designing a set, but dreaming about it was as far as most went. Except for Stephen Pakbaz, who created a new Lego model of the NASA Mars Science Laboratory Curiosity Rover.

Like its real counterpart, the Lego model boasts six-wheel rocker-bogie suspension, an articulated robotic arm and multiple camera sets. It also has a display plate with Lego brick Martian rocks and comes with a building instruction booklet that provides information about Pakbaz, the real Curiosity rover, and the history of Mars exploration.

When he was growing up in Northern California, Pakbaz played with Legos. He also liked taking apart household appliances to figure out how they worked and then rebuilding them to work differently. His interests paved the foundation of his career.

Fresh from obtaining his master’s in mechanical and aerospace engineering at UC San Diego, Pakbaz went to work at Jet Propulsion Laboratory in Pasadena in 2007.

“Working at JPL had been my dream job since high school and from that point on, I focused all of my educational efforts on achieving that goal,” Pakbaz said via email.

As a mechanical engineer at JPL, Pakbaz worked on the Curiosity rover, helping with design, assembly and testing. Among his duties, he designed brackets and covers, assembled components and tested the telecommunications systems.

“My favorite component on the rover is the rocker-bogie suspension system, which allows the rover to keep all six wheels on the ground as it travels over uneven Martian terrain. More than anything, I wanted to be able to play with the suspension system. However, due to the advanced and expensive nature of the project, I couldn’t exactly take the rover out for a joyride. So the next best thing was to make a model out of Lego. I completed a preliminary version during a three-day weekend early in 2011,” Pakbaz said.

While the real rover was under construction, Pakbaz used his Lego model to show his friends and family what the real one looked like and explained how it would work. He also took his Lego rover to a Lego Users Group of Los Angeles meeting, where he was encouraged to submit his idea to Lego Cuusoo, a website where people share their ideas for new Lego sets. The public is allowed to comment on and express their support of the designs.

Soon after posting his project at Lego Cuusoo, Pakbaz added instructions so others could replicate it with pieces from their existing Lego collections.

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“The best part was seeing how people came up with creative, multicolored solutions to make the rover work even if they didn’t have all of the correct pieces. Seeing others take the extra effort to make my model before it became an official Lego set confirmed that my efforts had been successful,” Pakbaz said.

Pakbaz received more than 10,000 votes of support for his Curiosity rover and in June 2013, the Lego Review Board selected the project for production.

Pakbaz credits sharing the story of his project, including his work on the real Curiosity rover, as part of the key to the success of his Lego set. Another factor was his incorporation of the Lego Group’s values of exploration, education and creativity.

“My goal for the Lego project was to encourage as much educational outreach as possible for the Curiosity rover’s mission and for space exploration,” Pakbaz said.

Lego has issued many sets highlighting the space program over the years, including the Discovery line with models that included the Space Shuttle and Lunar Lander, which inspired Pakbaz.

“Aluminum Lego bricks have been sent to Mars, three aluminum Lego mini figures are currently on their way to Jupiter, and not too long ago, an astronaut assembled a Lego model of the Space Station onboard the real Space Station. It was my hope to contribute to this cooperative effort,” Pakbaz said.

Pakbaz is especially pleased that the rocker-bogie suspension system he proposed came to fruition and enjoyed seeing the instruction booklet’s information on the rover and Mars.

Unfortunately, some things were left out of the Curiosity set, such as the Sky Crane, which was used to lower the rover onto Mars’ surface. It was too complex and large and would have made the set too costly, Pakbaz said.

“There was also some demand for a larger, motorized, robotic or radio-controlled version of the rover, but this would have made the set very expensive. However, I encourage people to try to make one on their own,” Pakbaz said.

In 2011, Pakbaz left JPL and he is now a senior mechanical designer at Orbital Sciences Corporation in Virginia, where he helps with spacecraft and rocket design. He still makes Lego models and displays them at conventions and other events.

“I expect my interest in Lego will be a lifelong hobby. I am always thinking of new Lego models faster than I can build them. My favorite creations are ones that incorporate some kind of simple machine or mechanical movement. Currently, I am working on a giant steampunk airship,” Pakbaz said.